BIOL 208 Lecture Notes - Lecture 13: Distal Convoluted Tubule, Afferent Arterioles, Renal Pyramids
Document Summary
Nephron: basic functional unit of the kidneys: structure: A blind? ending tube associated with a nest of capillaries. Juxtamedullary nephrons - the loop goes way down into the medulla - here, the thickened blood goes through blood vessels around the nephron loop known as the vasa recta. The last part of the nephron loop crosses the afferent arteriole of its renal corpuscle & is called the juxtaglomerular complex (jgc) - this complex compares the ltrate the nephron just made with blood coming into the nephron. Helper cells in the juxtaglomerular complex are called mesangial cells: functions: the nephron does 3 things. Lters blood in the glomerulus - you produce about 180 liters of ltrate per day. Reabsorption - you reabsorb most of the water & many other desirable materials. Everything in the blood plasma except for cells & proteins. The ltration membrane is made up of fenestrated capillaries, the basement membrane, the cells of the renal capsule called podocytes.